Government’s decision could set deadly national precedent for
predator killing on public wildlands. AFGD & USFS ignore public,
governor, congressman and state legislators.

Contact: Daniel R. Patterson, Desert Ecologist, 520.623.5252 x306

TUCSON -- The Center for Biological Diversity received
more calls over the weekend from the people in Sabino Canyon working
protect the
cougars through non-violent interference with this rushed and unjustified
hunt. They reported witnessing a lot of government activity in the
canyon, and observing a cougar hunter on horseback with a tracking
dog Sunday night. They say they’ll remain in the canyon in resistance
until the hunt is stopped.

In an earlier case where the Arizona Game & Fish
Dept. (AGFD) and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) killed cougars without
evidence
or trying other options, eight public-interest organizations, including
CBD, reached a settlement last week with the federal government in
a lawsuit challenging the killing of mountain lions in the Four Peaks
Wilderness Area of the Tonto National Forest.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and U.S. Forest
Service violated the National Environmental Policy Act, the Wilderness
Act, and other
laws by authorizing, assisting, and funding the Arizona Game and Fish
Department's project to kill mountain lions essentially to ‘study’ the
impact of those killings on the bighorn sheep population.

On the Sabino Canyon issue, Arizonans packed inside and outside of
the Game and Fish Commission hearing Saturday in Tucson, with most
(including state lawmakers) speaking out strongly against the cougar
hunt. Many also spoke in strong support of the Tumacacori Wilderness
proposal and the Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan. On Thursday, Several
hundred people protested the lion hunt in downtown Tucson at the Coronado
National Forest (CNF) headquarters.

In the Four Peaks Wilderness, despite the knowledge
that mountain lion predation is a minor factor related to bighorn
sheep survival
livestock grazing, habitat loss & fragmentation, and drought are
much more significant the three-year, federally-funded AGFD project
sought to kill 75% of the cougars within the study area.

“USFS & AGFD killed cougars in the Four Peaks Wilderness
without solid evidence or trying other options, and they are now repeating
the same outrageous mistake at Sabino Canyon,” said Daniel R.
Patterson, Desert Ecologist with CBD in Tucson. “The government's
deadly, out-of-control cougar policy must stop now, and hearings on
this issue should be held in Tucson, not Phoenix. Pumas are essential
to ecosystem health, and people need to learn to live with them, especially
in the urban sprawl wildlands interface areas.”

Government officials have failed to show that lions in Sabino Canyon
are likely to attack humans. A report released to CBD March 9 by CNF
showed only 2 of 15 (13%) reported lion sightings on at Sabino Canyon
confirmed since 2002, only 1 of 7 (14%) reports was confirmed on nearby
private lands during the same period. This report does not confirm
recent stalking of humans by lions, as has been claimed by officials.
Recent alleged sightings reported on TV news are unconfirmed, and biologists
know that most lion sighting reports are inaccurate.

“The government is rushing to kill these lions, without solid
evidence, and without first trying other options such as trail restrictions,
closures and hazing,” said Daniel R. Patterson, CBD Desert Ecologist. “This
is an outrageous, shameful decision driven by lawyers in Washington
and Phoenix that sets a dangerous precedent for wildlife killing on
our public lands. Wildlife is a part of our American natural heritage,
not a liability.”

Ironically, AGFD refused to support a recent bill in the Arizona legislature
to remove wildlife related government liability.

“Even if these cougars are killed, more will move in to the
area. With this deadly approach, it's likely future cougars will also
be killed,” says Patterson. “If the government succeeds,
Sabino Canyon will change from some of Tucson's best lion habitat to
a lion killing zone. Sabino Canyon is a wild area, not a city park
or Disneyland, and it shouldn't be managed this way.”

USFS and AGFD have refused a request to inform the public daily on
hunt progress.

Environmentalists point out that if left alone, pumas pushed in to
area by the Aspen fire may soon move up the canyon and away from people
due to warmer weather.

Relocation of mountain lions is not a viable option, and wildlife
managers have said if the lions are located they will be killed.

Sabino Canyon is now a controversial fee-demo area, and CNF benefits
financially from its maximum use by people.